In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in what’s new in J-pop.

With that in mind, here’s where you come in: I’m one person with one set of musical preferences, so please embed any other new J-pop tracks you’ve enjoyed in the comments so we can get a fuller spectrum each week.

2023-2025 Index

2026 Index: Dec 28 – Jan 3 // Jan 4 – Jan 10 // Jan 11 – Jan 17 // Jan 18 – Jan 24 // Jan 25 – Jan 31 // Feb 1 – Feb 7 // Feb 8 – Feb 14 // Feb 15 – Feb 21 // Feb 22 – Feb 28 // Mar 1 – Mar 7 // Mar 8 – Mar 14 // Mar 15 – Mar 21 // Mar 22 – Mar 28 // Mar 29 – Apr 4 // Apr 5 – Apr 11 // Apr 12 – Apr 18 // Apr 19 – Apr 25 // Apr 26 – May 2 // May 3 – May 9 // May 10 – May 16 // May 17 – May 23 // May 24 – May 30 // May 31 – Jun 6 // Jun 7 – Jun 13 // Jun 14 – Jun 20 // Jun 21 – Jun 27 // Jun 28 – Jul 4 // Jul 5 – Jul 11 // Jul 12 – Jul 18 // Jul 19 – Jul 25 // Jul 26 – Aug 1 // Aug 2 – Aug 8 // Aug 9 – Aug 15 // Aug 16 – Aug 22 // Aug 23 – Aug 29 // Aug 30 – Sep 5 // Sep 6 – Sep 12 // Sep 13 – Sep 19 // Sep 20 – Sep 26 // Sep 27 – Oct 3 // Oct 4 – Oct 10 // Oct 11 – Oct 17

THIS WEEK: October 18 – October 24

Ado – Patient A

Ado’s music feels especially suited to Halloween.

Ae! group – Kono asa wa

Pleasant, forgettable fluff.

AK-69 – IKIZAMA

It’s nice to hear this kind of emotional rap after so many repetitive, slurry sing-talk raps from other artists.

Billyrrom – Mirror Ball

A nice retro groove.

BOKUAO – Bokuwamikatada (song of the week!)

I really love the guitar in this. The whole song has such a nice, upbeat punch to it.

BUDDiiS – Mugendai LOVE

I’m loving this high-energy dance sound that’s starting to infiltrate J-pop again. I’m not sure that much beyond the chorus works for me here, but that chorus is very fun.

ClariS – Synchro Blue

Ah… pure, unfiltered J-pop.

DEEP – OD’d On You

Nice R&B styled vocals, as usual.

DISH// – Me & My Blue Jeans

Pleasant and toe-tapping.

eyed – silence (song of the week!)

Now, this is a girl group debut to watch. It’s not like anything else out there and that’s very refreshing. What a hypnotic electronic beat.

GNJB – Love Reason

Frantic and stuffed-to-the-brim with ideas. It has its charm, I suppose.

Hey! Say! JUMP – Saikaiai Lie Kitaishite Cry

It’s not a bad song, but I’m so sick of this fitful, overstuffed (yet somehow boring) sound in J-pop.

KEY TO LIT – KEY TERUYA2 (song of the week!)

There was a time when a new Starto debut felt like a momentous occasion. But between their reshuffling of their juniors and my increasing disinterest in the agency’s musical output, this debut feels more like an afterthought. However, I’ve followed these guys for years and I actually love this song. It’s definitely better than most of the agency’s recent singles and reminds me of the fun, massively-produced work they used to churn out. Might KEY TO LIT be the ones to rekindle my interest in Starto?